Bury St Edmunds Rugby Club boss Gavin Hogg has urged the region to get behind his side for their historic top-of-the-table clash at the Haberden this Saturday (3pm).

The west Suffolk outfit are bidding to become the first ever team from the county to reach the fourth tier of English rugby.

A win over the London Irish Wild Geese at the weekend would see them leapfrog the visitors into top spot of the National League 3 London & South East table and put promotion in their hands heading into the final eight matches.

“We’ve always stepped up and raised our game for these big fixtures in the past and I see no reason why that won’t be the case again,” said Hogg. “The town has really got behind the boys and an increased support this weekend could make all the difference in a tight match. I really hope a few more people wrap up warm and come and cheer us on.

“When I first came here four years ago we had the traditional rugby crowd of club members and friends and family of players.

“Success has attracted a lot more people though and I think rugby fans are realising that the quality is good here and that it’s a decent afternoon out.

“Crowds of around 500-600 have not been uncommon in recent times so let’s hope we can top that. We’ve got more than 100 coming for the pre-match lunch, so that bodes well.”

Bury beat the Wild Geese 47-17 in the reverse fixture last October and have lost just one match on home turf all season. Hogg continued: “We played some of our best rugby at their place and probably caught them on an off day.

“Since the turn of the year this has been a game that has always been in the back of our minds. We’ve just wanted to make sure that we won our first three games in January to ensure we had the opportunity to go into this one with the clear objective of going top.

“I wouldn’t go as far as saying the team that wins will go on to win the title because it will be very difficult for any team to go the remainder of the season unbeaten. There will be plenty of twists and turns to come, but we certainly want to put our fate in our own hands.”